Timer mounting and drive



Patented May 5, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE T. TRGENS AND PAUL O. BALDUS, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNORS TO OUTBOARD MOTORS CORPORATION, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION OF MICHIGAN rmEn MOUNTING AND DRIVE Application filed June 19,1930. Serial No. 462,379.

In an outboard motor the cylinders are usually horizontal and the crank shaft vertical. The crank shaft projects above the crank case to receive the armature of an elec- 4o iarly adapted for use in electrically started tric starting motor, or a rope starterdisk, or both. A supplemental bearing for the end of the shaft remote from the crankcase adds a great deal of expense and complicates the mounting of the starting motor. Yet without such a bearing there is sufiicient displacement of the crank shaft or the motor armature shaft to afiect seriously the accuracy of a timer wherein the moving timer parts take p a-position from the crank shaft by a direct mounting thereon.

Accordingly, it is the primary object of the present invention to provide a timer mounting in which the moving parts are pro- Vided with a bearing entirely. distinct from that of the vertical crank shaft of an outboard motor, and are flexibly coupled thereto without increase in weight or expense which would be necessary to provide a bearing for the shaft itself.

More articularly stated, it is our purpose to provlde a bracket upon which the normally stationary portions of .a timer are adjustable in a rotatable way, and in which the movable part of the timer is journaled for rotation independently of forces acting to distort the motor shaft, a suitable-flexible coupling being provided between the motor shaft and the timer, which in certain instances, may be used to reduce the speed of timer operation. The invention is peculoutboard organizations in which the length of crank shaft projecting above its bearing is unusually long and the lateral strains thereon are unusually severe.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 shows a vertical axial section through a device embodying this invention.

Figure 2 is a plan view of the timer shown in Fig. 1 with the top of the casing removed.

Figure 3 is an axial section through a modified device embodying this invention.

Figure 4 is a plan view thereof, with the timer cap removed.

Like parts are identified by the same reference characters throughout the several views. I

The outboard motor engine crank case 5 is provided with a bearing 6 upon which is bolted the field housing 7 for an electric starting motor having a field 8 secured to the housing and an armature 9 mounted on the tapered end of crank shaft 10. An adapter ll-is bolted to the fitting 12 which carries the armature and thereby adapts such fitting for the particular crank shaft 10 emloyed. The adapter is held in place by a special nut 13 disclosed and claimed in the co-pending companion'application of Finn T. Irgens entitled Armature nut and puller. This nut is shouldered to engage a'split ring 14 fitted into a groove undercut in fitting 12, whereby the unscrewing of'nut 13 is adapted to act through fitting 12 to withdraw the vadapter 11 from the tapered end of shaft 10 and thereby to effect the dismounting of the armature from said shaft.

An annular closure 15 for the motor casing is provided with an opening through which the commutator 16 of the motor projects. A rope starter pulley at 17 is screwed to the fitting 12 above the commutator for emergency use. It is surmounted by the timer bracket 18, and the motor and timer are both housed within the cover 19.

In accordance with the present invention the bracket 18 is provided with a recessed'seat 20 for a rotatably adjustable disk 2lupon which are mounted the condensers 22 and the relatively fixedcontacts 23, movable contact 24, cam follower levers 25, fulcrum pins 26 for such levers, and the springs 27 which normally maintain the contacts closed. A Bowden wire 28, of which the sheath 29 is anchored at 30 to the bracket 18, serves as a control to determine the angular position of the disk or plate 21 which carries the timer parts. Obviously, the rotation of this disk in its bearing seat 20 will determine the position of cam followers 31 with respect to the operative faces of cam 32, and will thereby I ried by the short length of shafting 33 journaled in a sleeve 34 of disk or plate 21 and flexibly connected by means of coupling 35 with across pin in nut 13.

This permits the timer assembly to be separated unitarily by mere axial movement from the starting motor when the bracket 18 is unscrewed. The withdrawal of an armature is thus facilitated very eatly as compared with the use of any ot er timer drive or mounting.

It will be obvious that the arrangement is such that the timer cam is flexibly and detachably connected to receive motion from the crankshaft 10 withoutbeing in any way subject to the lateral deflection or distortion of such shaft. ,At the same time the whole timer mechanism is so readily removable from the motor housing as to offer practically no obstacle to repair or replacement of the armature, and the expense which would otherwise be involved in providing an adequately rigid bearing for the end of the crank shaft is also avoided.

Similar results are obtained in the use of theconstruction shown in Figs. 3 and 4, in which the bracket 18'carries a soc'keted hear ing member 40 having a depending sleeve 41 provided with anti-friction bearings for the timer shaft 33'. v

The timer-shell 42 is rotatable in the socket of plate 40, being guided in its rotative adjustment by the annular flange 43 at the margin of said plate. A handle 44 is adapted to receive a connection for manipulating the timer, and a removable cover 45 is provided for the timer-mechanism.

Instead of being provided with a link coupler connecting'lt to the crank shaft, the

timer shaft 33. carries a gear 46 which meshes with a pinion 47,.mounted on thestarter disk 17 If the pinion and gear are so made as to have a 1 to 2 ratio, th'e'timer shaft 33' and the cam 32 carried thereby, will operate at-one half crank shaft speed, thereby requirin a difl'ere'nt arrangement of the timer mec anism from that shown in Fig. 2.

Inthe Fig. 4; construction the condensers 22 are closely associated and the cam follower arms 25 cross each other to'provide camfollowers 31 at degrees separation angularly about the axisof cam 32' The cam itself is provided with two noses whereby its operation at one half crank shaft speed will nevertheless produce the required number of makes and breaks of the two sets of contact points 23 and 24.

- In the construction shown in Figs. 3 and 4,

like that shown in Figs. 1- and 2, the timer shaft is-provided with a'bracket bearingenmeans and rigidly connected with the crank yield in accordance with the requirements of tatable timer cam supported upon said 'gageable in a direction longitudinally of the unitary removal of said bracket and the timtirely distinct from any crank shaft bearing, v and the coupling between pinion 47 and gear 46 is equivalent to the flexible link connection shown in Fig. 1, inasmuch as it provides for the transmission of crank shaft rotation to the timer shaft with sufiicient flexibility to relieve the timer shaft and the timer shaft bearing of crank shaft deflection. In both. the constructions the timer shaft is ournaled co-axially with the rotatably' adjustable parts upon which the breaker points are located, and thereby the essential timing relation is preserved at all times. i

We claim:

1. The combination with an engine crank shaft and a crank casing providing a bearing therefor, of a bracket rigidly connected with said casing, a rotatably adjustable timer support mounted on said bracket, and a timer shaft journaled co-axially with said support: in a position determined by said bracket and flexibly coupled to said crank shaft to receive motion therefrom at a point spaced, from said bearing.

2. In a device of the character described, the combination with a crank shaft and a crank case provided with a crankshaft bearing, of starting means mounted on the end of the crank shaft projecting beyond said bearing, a bracket extending around said starting case, a timer mounting journaled for rotative adjustment upon said bracket, a timer cam rotatably mounted co-axially with the bearing upon which said mounting is rotatably adjustable, and motion transmitting connections operatively connecting said crank shaft and ,cam and including flexible I coupling means adapted to permitsaid crank shaft to said starting means and without affecting the relation of said cam to said timer mounting.

3. In a device of the character described, the combination of a crank shaft and a crank case provided with a crank shaft bearing, of a starting'device for said crank shaft including a part detachably applied thereto, a bracket extending about said art and detachably connected with said crank case, timing mechanism including a rotatably adjustablecontact mounted and a co-axially robracket, and flexible motion transmitting connections between said crank shaft and said cam including coupling means adapted to o erate said cam without transmitting cran shaft deflection thereto, said cou ling means being freely engageable and crank shaft, whereby to permit the bodily ing mechanism carried thereby for the disengagement of said part from said crank shaft. 4. In a device of, the character described, the combination with a crank shaft and crank case provided with a crank shaft bearing,of a

starting motor including a part mounted on said crank shaft, a timer removably connected with said crank case and disposed beyond said starting motor, and a coupling connecting said timer with said crank shaft and freely engageable and disenga able in an axial direction, whereb to acilitate the bodily removal of said timer.

5. In an outboard motor, the combination with a crank case provided with a crank shaft bearing and a crank shaft projecting from said bearing, of a starting motor housing mounted on said crank case about the reje'cting end of the crank shaft and provided with a field secured to said housing, an arma ture removably connected with the crank shaft within said housing, a bracket connected with said housing and extending across a portion of said armature, timer mechanism mounted in said bracket and including breaker points, and a timer cam 'ournaled for rotation with respect to said racket, and motion transmitting connections between said shaft and said timer cam, including a coupling part connected with said cam, and a coupling part connected with said armature, said parts bein flexibly engaged in the normal position 0 said bracket, and freely disengaged in an axial direction whereby to permit the unitary removal of said bracket and timer.

FINN T. IRGENS. PAUL C. BALDUS. 

